Disable Smilies in This Post. Show Signature: include your profile signature. Only registered users may have signatures.

*If HTML and/or UBB Code are enabled, this means you can use HTML and/or UBB Code in your message.

If you have previously registered, but forgotten your password, click here.

T O P I C R E V I E W

Robert Pearlman

STS-400 (STS-125 LON) mission patches

Shuttle Endeavour, which will next launch on the STS-126 mission in November, is first being prepared as a rescue vehicle for Atlantis' STS-125 mission, which will service the Hubble Space Telescope. Endeavour will be designated STS-400 if needed for the "Launch-On-Need" flight.

Since Hubble is in a different orbit than the International Space Station, Atlantis' crew cannot use the ISS as a safe haven and follow the usual plan of recovery should their orbiter be damaged beyond repair. NASA therefore developed a flight plan to conduct a shuttle-to-shuttle rescue mission, wherein Endeavour would use its robot arm to grapple the end of Atlantis' arm to act as a bridge for spacewalking astronauts to follow while transferring between orbiters.

The STS-400 crew will the include the same astronauts who flew most recently on Endeavour's flight deck.

Two unofficial patches have emerged for STS-400. The first, the "Space Rescue" emblem, is the design work of a "noted west-coast designer," according to a memo obtained by NASASpaceFlight.com that accompanied both insignias.

This adopts many of the elements seen in a rescue organization's patch - the square cross, bold letterers and border, and simple design. The idea is that the emblem instantly identifies the rescue organization in a crowd of others. In this case, the Shuttle outlines identify the purpose of our organization.

The second patch was designed by the crew and "utilizes a virtually universal emblem of Rescue."

Both of these designs are to be considered "unofficial". NASA has not given either the crew or their flight team any official support for such an emblem.

NavySpaceFan

I love the dog patch, too bad they did not use a Golden!

Robert Pearlman

quote:Originally posted by NavySpaceFan:...too bad they did not use a Golden!

Note 7 stars near Endeavour for 7 crewmembers and 4 stars near Atlantis for 4 crewmembers on cross patch.

KSCartist

They're great designs. I wish I'd done them.

ShuttleDiscovery

I HATE the one with the dog! Why a dog? I really like the first one though.

spacecraft films

I'm feeling really old with this thread. Has the St. Bernard with the keg of brandy under the neck left the vernacular as a symbol of rescue?

Already?

Robert Pearlman

quote:Originally posted by ShuttleDiscovery:Why a dog?

Not just any dog, a St. Bernard, which has been a symbol of rescue since the 17th century [on edit: as Mark wrote]. To quote Wikipedia:

The St. Bernard Dog is a very large breed of dog originally bred for rescue...

Their history has also been connected with the hospice at the Great St. Bernard Pass. First reports of the dogs' presence at the pass date to the 17th century, and they remained loyal companions to the monks there.

The most famous St. Bernard to save people at the pass was Barry (sometimes spelled Berry), who reportedly saved somewhere between 40 and 100 lives.

St. Bernards are often portrayed, especially in comics, cartoons and old live action comedies such as Swiss Miss, with small barrels of brandy worn around their necks. This was supposedly used to warm the victims that the dogs found, although in reality, alcohol (which acts as a vasodilator) would worsen the situation of a person suffering hypothermia. However, the monks of the St. Bernard Hospice deny that any St. Bernard has ever carried casks or small barrels around their necks; they believe that the origin of the image is an early painting.,

NavySpaceFan

quote:Originally posted by NavySpaceFan:...too bad they did not use a Golden!

I mention Goldens because:

I have three

Goldens are used extensively for rescue, especially for avalanche and collapsed buildings.

tegwilym

I like the dog one...

garymilgrom

I don't collect patches but I would buy these. I think the humor of the designs reflects the serious nature of a rescue mission well.

I'd buy them as a memento to remember these interesting days in the summer of 2008 with two Shuttles rolled out at once! One day we'll be telling this to the students or youngsters.

Paul Dye, the lead flight director for the rescue mission, wanted an unofficial space rescue logo for his team. Obviously, no one wants to see that one in actual flight, but he had been getting requests for a patch, I think mostly for report covers and Powerpoint presentations, just for internal use. It turns out that Paul has a background as a firefighter, so he liked the idea of the square cross that evoked the tradition of emergency rescue and first responders.

More details about the STS-400 (and STS-125) patches, with comments from the Okuda and the crew members will be in a forthcoming article on collectSPACE.

ShuttleDiscovery

They need to change the LON orbiter to Discovery now as 125 has been delayed.

Robert Pearlman

If NASA decides to fly STS-119 before STS-125 (based on the Hubble program's readiness to fly), then Endeavour will once again be the vehicle designed for the STS-400 rescue flight.

Robert Pearlman

As photographed being worn around Johnson Space Center:

I'm told though, that the designs remain "unofficial".

(And just to bring this thread up-to-date, the STS-400 mission, if needed, will still be flown on Endeavour but now by the STS-126 flight deck crew.)

Robert Pearlman

And now for the STS-400 patch you didn't see...

The above art may not be reproduced without permission of the artists and/or collectSPACE.

On March 28, 2009, the same day that Discovery landed with the STS-119 crew, astronaut Chris Ferguson asked artist Tim Gagnon if he could design him a patch. Ferguson and his STS-400 crewmates were not satisfied with the designs that they had (especially the Saint Bernard crew patch inherited from the former STS-400 members). Gagnon teamed again with Jorge Cartes and submitted four drafts.

This design was favored by the STS-400 crew of Ferguson, Eric Boe, Stephen Bowen and Shane Kimbrough. Since there was never a formal review, we will never know if it would have been the patch that they wore.

STS-400 Patch, Draft Four

This design for the STS-400 space shuttle launch-on-need (LON) mission uses the international nautical symbol of a lifesaver as the basis for the patch. It provides an instantly recognizable design element as well as natural spacing for the crew members' surnames.

Endeavour is shown rendezvousing with Atlantis to affect the rescue. The gold astronaut symbol illustrates astronauts helping astronauts. The orbital trajectory of the astronaut symbol reaches from one orbiter to the other to symbolize the safe transfer of the crew from the stricken to the rescue ship.

The inner blue circle represents Earth. The rays from the astronaut symbol touch the circle to represent the safe return of the STS-125 crew. Stars may have been added to represent all eleven astronauts.

SparkR_13

Can anyone supply information on the crew change? I can't seem to find anything specific on the patch with the St. Bernard names, but do see the Cross patch and notes for that crew? Thanks

Robert Pearlman

The STS-400 crew changes were a result of delays to the STS-125 mission. As the Hubble servicing mission was postponed due to issues with the space telescope, the mission's backup switched from a subset of Endeavour's STS-123 crew to a subset of Endeavour's STS-126 crew.

The Saint Bernard patch was designed by the STS-123-turned-STS-400 crew members. The cross patch was designed by Mike Okuda for the STS-123 crew members, and the life preserver was designed by Tim Gagnon and Jorge Cartes for the STS-126-turned-STS-400 crew members.

Is that what you were seeking?

SparkR_13

Yes, exactly Robert, Thanks! That helped me find the pieces better and get them organzied with explanations. Appreciate that!